Magnus Carlsen has fulfilled the promise he has shown since he was a teenager and become World Champion. The 22 year-old Norwegian grandmaster took on the reigning champion Viswanathan Anand, twice his age and in is home town of Chennai, India last month. As the highest rated player in chess history, Carlsen started as warm favourite in the best of 12 game match.
Interest centered on whether Anand could find way of neutralising Carlsen's strategy of steering the play toward long games where he could pose his opponent difficult problems to solve. Anand had his chances for advantage in games one and three, but was content to draw. In game four Carlsen won a pawn, but determined defence by Anand saved the draw. Then in game five the match swung in the Challenger's favour when he achieved the type of position he wanted and ground out a typical win. Anand could not recover mentally in time for the next game and lost his second in a row. After two more draws Anand's last chance came in the ninth game, when he switched openings and managed to get the type of razor-sharp attacking position he needed. Despite being within a whisker of mate, Carlsen's tenacious defence showed his cool head and awesome calculating ability. It was Anand who finally cracked under the pressure, blundering to a third loss. Carlsen pressed for a win in the tenth game, but eventually settled for a draw to finish the match, winning 6½-3½.
Today's game is the critical fifth game that turned the match. Carlsen is playing with the white pieces.
1.c4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 c6 4.e4 dxe4 5.Nxe4 Bb4+ 6.Nc3!? ---
Avoiding the super-sharp Marshall Gambit line against the Semi-Slav Defence starting with 6 Bd2. Carlsen's choice offers no more than equal chances, so his opponent is unlikely to have prepared deeply. 6.--- c5 7.a3 Ba5 8.Nf3 Nf6 9.Be3 Nc6 10.Qd3!? ---
A new move. White supports the knight on c3 and intends to bring a rook quickly to the d-file. 10.--- cxd4 11.Nxd4 Ng4
Exchanging knight for the bishop while it is tied to d4. Another possibility was 11... Ne5 12 Qc2 Neg4 with the same idea. 12.0-0-0 Nxe3 13.fxe3 Bc7?!
Too eager to resolve the tension, Anand allows Carlsen to get an ending where Black is passive, though he has the two bishops. Equal were either 13... Nxd4 keeping queens on, or 13... 0-0 with a tempo up on the game. 14.Nxc6 bxc6 15.Qxd8+ Bxd8 16.Be2 Ke7
An good alternative was 16... Bb6!? 17 Rd3 Ba6 activating the bishops. 17.Bf3 Bd7 18.Ne4 Bb6?!
Giving up the bishop pair to activate his rooks. But 18... Bc7 19 Nc5 Be8 20 Na6 Be5 21 b4 f5 offers sufficient counterplay to draw. 19.c5 f5 20.cxb6 fxe4 21.b7! Rab8 22.Bxe4 Rxb7
After the game Carlsen thought his advantages of better bishop and pawn structure were close to winning, if he had found the right plan. But for the next phase Anand defends well. 23.Rhf1 Rb5! 24.Rf4 g5 25.Rf3 h5 26.Rdf1 Be8 27.Bc2 Rc5 28.Rf6 h4 29.e4 a5 30.Kd2 Rb5 31.b3 Bh5
A possible path to draw was 31... g4! 32 Kc3 Rc5+ 33 Kb2 g3! 34 hxg3 hxg3 and bringing the rook to h2. 32.Kc3 Rc5+ 33.Kb2 Rd8 34.R1f2 Rd4!
Playing actively, though criticised by Anand after the game. 35.Rh6 Bd1 36.Bb1 ---
White must retain bishops or he will be worse. 36.--- Rb5 37.Kc3 c5 38.Rb2 e5 39.Rg6 a4!?
Sacrificing a pawn to try to reach a draw – but 39... g4 keeping the pawn was simpler. 40.Rxg5 Rxb3+ 41.Rxb3 Bxb3 42.Rxe5+ Kd6 43.Rh5 Rd1 44.e5+ Kd5 45.Bh7 Rc1+?
The key error after a long, hard defence. 45... Ra1! 46 Bg8+ Kc6 47 Bxb3 Rxa3 will draw. e.g. 48 Kc4 axb3 49 Rh6+ Kc7 50 Kc3 h3! 51 Rxh3 b2+ 52 Kxb2 Rxh3 53 gxh3 Kc6 winning the e-pawn and heading for h8. Carlsen's endgame technique now makes the win look easy. 46.Kb2 Rg1 47.Bg8+ Kc6 48.Rh6+! ---
A finesse - keeping the king from d5. 48.--- Kd7 49.Bxb3 axb3 50.Kxb3 Rxg2 51.Rxh4 Ke6 52.a4! Kxe5 53.a5 Kd6 54.Rh7! ---
Cutting off the king from the seventh rank. Black's rook can't stop both passed pawns by itself. 54.--- Kd5 55.a6 c4+ 56.Kc3 Ra2 57.a7 Kc5 58.h4 Resigns
Carlsen crowned World Champion
Problem: White to play and mate in five.
Magnus Carlsen has fulfilled the promise he has shown since he was a teenager and become World Champion. The 22 year-old Norwegian grandmaster took on the reigning champion Viswanathan Anand, twice his age and in is home town of Chennai, India last month. As the highest rated player in chess history, Carlsen started as warm favourite in the best of 12 game match.
Interest centered on whether Anand could find way of neutralising Carlsen's strategy of steering the play toward long games where he could pose his opponent difficult problems to solve. Anand had his chances for advantage in games one and three, but was content to draw. In game four Carlsen won a pawn, but determined defence by Anand saved the draw. Then in game five the match swung in the Challenger's favour when he achieved the type of position he wanted and ground out a typical win. Anand could not recover mentally in time for the next game and lost his second in a row. After two more draws Anand's last chance came in the ninth game, when he switched openings and managed to get the type of razor-sharp attacking position he needed. Despite being within a whisker of mate, Carlsen's tenacious defence showed his cool head and awesome calculating ability. It was Anand who finally cracked under the pressure, blundering to a third loss. Carlsen pressed for a win in the tenth game, but eventually settled for a draw to finish the match, winning 6½-3½.
Today's game is the critical fifth game that turned the match. Carlsen is playing with the white pieces.
1.c4 e6
2.d4 d5
3.Nc3 c6
4.e4 dxe4
5.Nxe4 Bb4+
6.Nc3!? ---
Avoiding the super-sharp Marshall Gambit line against the Semi-Slav Defence starting with 6 Bd2. Carlsen's choice offers no more than equal chances, so his opponent is unlikely to have prepared deeply.
6.--- c5
7.a3 Ba5
8.Nf3 Nf6
9.Be3 Nc6
10.Qd3!? ---
A new move. White supports the knight on c3 and intends to bring a rook quickly to the d-file.
10.--- cxd4
11.Nxd4 Ng4
Exchanging knight for the bishop while it is tied to d4. Another possibility was 11... Ne5 12 Qc2 Neg4 with the same idea.
12.0-0-0 Nxe3
13.fxe3 Bc7?!
Too eager to resolve the tension, Anand allows Carlsen to get an ending where Black is passive, though he has the two bishops. Equal were either 13... Nxd4 keeping queens on, or 13... 0-0 with a tempo up on the game.
14.Nxc6 bxc6
15.Qxd8+ Bxd8
16.Be2 Ke7
An good alternative was 16... Bb6!? 17 Rd3 Ba6 activating the bishops.
17.Bf3 Bd7
18.Ne4 Bb6?!
Giving up the bishop pair to activate his rooks. But 18... Bc7 19 Nc5 Be8 20 Na6 Be5 21 b4 f5 offers sufficient counterplay to draw.
19.c5 f5
20.cxb6 fxe4
21.b7! Rab8
22.Bxe4 Rxb7
After the game Carlsen thought his advantages of better bishop and pawn structure were close to winning, if he had found the right plan. But for the next phase Anand defends well.
23.Rhf1 Rb5!
24.Rf4 g5
25.Rf3 h5
26.Rdf1 Be8
27.Bc2 Rc5
28.Rf6 h4
29.e4 a5
30.Kd2 Rb5
31.b3 Bh5
A possible path to draw was 31... g4! 32 Kc3 Rc5+ 33 Kb2 g3! 34 hxg3 hxg3 and bringing the rook to h2.
32.Kc3 Rc5+
33.Kb2 Rd8
34.R1f2 Rd4!
Playing actively, though criticised by Anand after the game.
35.Rh6 Bd1
36.Bb1 ---
White must retain bishops or he will be worse.
36.--- Rb5
37.Kc3 c5
38.Rb2 e5
39.Rg6 a4!?
Sacrificing a pawn to try to reach a draw – but 39... g4 keeping the pawn was simpler.
40.Rxg5 Rxb3+
41.Rxb3 Bxb3
42.Rxe5+ Kd6
43.Rh5 Rd1
44.e5+ Kd5
45.Bh7 Rc1+?
The key error after a long, hard defence. 45... Ra1! 46 Bg8+ Kc6 47 Bxb3 Rxa3 will draw. e.g. 48 Kc4 axb3 49 Rh6+ Kc7 50 Kc3 h3! 51 Rxh3 b2+ 52 Kxb2 Rxh3 53 gxh3 Kc6 winning the e-pawn and heading for h8. Carlsen's endgame technique now makes the win look easy.
46.Kb2 Rg1
47.Bg8+ Kc6
48.Rh6+! ---
A finesse - keeping the king from d5.
48.--- Kd7
49.Bxb3 axb3
50.Kxb3 Rxg2
51.Rxh4 Ke6
52.a4! Kxe5
53.a5 Kd6
54.Rh7! ---
Cutting off the king from the seventh rank. Black's rook can't stop both passed pawns by itself.
54.--- Kd5
55.a6 c4+
56.Kc3 Ra2
57.a7 Kc5
58.h4 Resigns
1-0
Solution: 1 Rxg7+! Kxg7 2 Rg1+ Rg2 3 Rxg2+ Kf6 4 Qg6+ Ke5 5 Bd6#.